Polymers used in the packaging of food materials, medical equipment, and children's novelty toys are subjected to contamination with bacteria and other microbial species. Sterilized or antiseptic products or packaging materials are required for any item that is in contact with food or human contact as well as certain medical diagnostic procedures. Antimicrobials or antiseptics are chemical compounds that reduce or mitigate the growth or development of microbial organisms, may be incorporated into products for reducing contamination by bacteria or other microbes. This may be achieved by a variety of mechanisms dependent upon the mode of action, composition, degree of activity, and application. The use of the antimicrobial compounds leads to either death or arrested growth of the targeted microorganisms. Since their discovery in the early 1900s, antimicrobial agents have transformed the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases. They are currently employed across a very broad spectrum of applications.
Antimicrobials, however, in greater concentrations can also be potentially hazardous to human health and to the environment. Antimicrobials have been determined to be the cause of skin irritations, and have been linked to increased susceptibility to allergies. Antimicrobials may also be washed into our water streams, and some antimicrobials, such as triclosan, for example, are toxic to aquatic organisms, particularly algae, and have been found to accumulate in fish. Therefore, it is desirable to have non-leaching antimicrobial materials that remain effective over the life of usage and that reduce the risk of creating adaptable resistant microorganisms. Depending on the methods used to incorporate the antimicrobial agents into a product, such as a polymer, almost all treatments fall into one of the following three categories: 1) adsorption of the antimicrobial agent to the surface of materials ether passively or in combination with surfactants or surface-bonded polymers; 2) incorporation of the agent into a polymer coating applied on the material surface; or 3) compounding the agent into the bulk material comprising the device. Among these, perhaps the most common strategy involves the impregnation of antimicrobial agents into a polymer binder applied to the device surface.
Providing ubiquitous packaging materials with antimicrobial and antiseptic properties, or producing new antiseptic polymers for such applications have a large and immediate global market. Several types of antimicrobial polymers are used to some extent, but they remain expensive due to the need to prepare specialized active monomers or the need to subsequently coat the finished article with the antiseptic materials. This additional processing step is not trivial from a processing and coating stability perspective. Therefore, there remains a need for cost effective methods of mass production of antimicrobial polymers.